A sound of... magikarp?
by schell21
Summary: Ash gets the chance to get a pokemon nobody has seen before, by travelling back in time!
1. Default Chapter

A sound of Magicarp by Schell   
  
You know I own none of the characters. This occurs somewhere in the first series.  
  
*************************************  
  
"Hey Ash" Misty called. "I noticed you haven't caught that many pokemon"  
  
"Yeah" Ash said embarrassed. "I am only waiting for the ultra rare pokemon. The kind nobody can ever get"  
  
"The way I see it," said Brock "We have probably seen more rare pokemon then anyone else. But there is always something stopping us. Whether it's Team Rocket, it belongs to someone, some moral dilemma," he listed.  
  
Ash turned a further shade of red. "Yeah, but I want the really, really, rare ones" he explained.  
  
They then find themselves conveniently in front of a poster.  
  
"Maybe this is what you are after" misty pointed.  
  
The poster looked quite recent. it read:   
  
Updated safari notice. Tired of catching ordinary day to day pokemon? Need a little variety? We can help. Trips are being organised on a hunt through time, of which YOU could be the lucky trainer to catch the most rarest, dangerous pokemon that ever walked the earth. For details, come to our head office. Price is reasonable.  
  
"What do you think?" Asked Brock.  
  
"It must be a joke" Said Misty.  
  
"What? Time travel?" asked Ash.  
  
"No, that the price is reasonable."  
  
"Oh. Well let's give it a try"  
  
The trio walked towards the city.  
  
*************  
  
A few moments later, Jesse and James came along. They walked past the notice, realising what it said, they quickly turned towards it.  
  
"Rare pokemon?" James read out loud.  
  
"Through time?" Jesse also read.  
  
"Lets do it!" They both cried as they ran.  
  
Meowth tailed after them. "Hey wait for me!" he cried.  
  
**************  
  
Things were going normal in Veridian City. Tall buildings, a wonderment of architecture sprawled about the place in almost perfect order. Which one of these magnificent buildings held the fabled pokemon safari though time?  
  
"Are you sure this is the place?" Brock asked staring at the shanty broken down house before him.  
  
"That is what the notice said" Misty held up the address.  
  
They walked inside.   
  
The exterior of the house was nothing like the interior. Complex machines lined the wall, that made you wonder if they were from this century. A desk was in front, sitting behind was a sixteen year old girl. She had purple hair and thick glasses. "Are you here because of the safari trip through time?" She said.  
  
They nodded.  
  
"My name is Lucca" She introduced herself. "I organise the trips and come with you as a guide."  
  
Brock looked at her. "Don't I know you from somewhere?"  
  
"No! I am a completely original character. I have nothing to do with any RPG you might have played, or anything like that!"  
  
They took a step back, glancing at the author with an accusing look. They then forgot about it (To their distaste!)  
  
"So, how much is it?" Asked Ash.  
  
"Like the poster said, quite reasonable"   
  
She handed Ash the letter.   
  
There was a number. "So far so good," thought Ash, then he saw the trail of zeroes that followed. He took a deep breath, but his hand started shaking. He fainted. The paper flew into the air, to Brock. He too read it.   
  
All in all, he took it quite calmly.  
  
"We can't afford this!" He shouted half tearing the paper to shreds.  
  
"What did you expect," replied Lucca calmly, charter flights?" she then saw Pikachu. "Get that electric pokemon out of here! Don't you know how sensitive this equipment is?"  
  
The lights suddenly went red. Lucca cried in surprise and went back to her computer. "Oh great" She shook her head in dismay. She looked out a window where a craft materialised in the back of the building. Next to it was an identical craft. On the one that materialised was an identical Lucca, and a few passengers. Gary was amongst them.  
  
"I tell you I could have got it!" Gary was saying for the first time ever in his life.  
  
Lucca ran to the craft and was talking to the other Lucca.  
  
"There has been a misalignment in the chrono-reggirt-equilibrium . You have materialised a few days in your future, into my present!" She said with careful simplicity.  
  
"Sorry" the newly materialised Lucca apologised, understanding the futility of explaining in non linear terms what happened.  
  
Ash and his friends caught up with them.   
  
Gary saw them with surprise. "Don't tell me you're here too for this trip," he said. "There's no way 'you' could afford it"  
  
"I can!" said Ash, until he remembered the long line of zeroes making him feel faint for a moment. "Just how could you?"  
  
"Don't talk to him" said present Lucca. "He belongs in the past. You could mess things up in the present."  
  
Gary ignored her. "Gramps paid. I just said it was for the chance to get a pokemon he would really enjoy studying" he said.  
  
"Did you get pokemon?" Asked Ash.  
  
"No one has yet. I 'nearly' had it, I was so close" Gary emphasised just how close by clenching his fists.  
  
"What were you trying to get?" Ash asked, but the craft was already powering up.  
  
"Bad luck Ash, Maybe Ill see you later." Gary and the craft then vanished.  
  
Ash stood quiet for a moment. Then a look of what could almost be described as insanity came to his eyes. He started laughing to himself. "I am going to get that pokemon he couldn't. You wait and see!"  
  
"I accept all major credit cards" Said Lucca.  
  
Ash was brought back down to Earth.   
  
"I tell you what," Lucca began.  
  
Ash looked hopeful. "Yes?"  
  
"There is the competition I have organised for a free trip. Its a one time only promotion offer..."  
  
"Really?" Ash said excited.  
  
"Don't get your hopes up. The chances of winning are incalculable. Almost infinite to one."  
  
"Let me try," said Ash confidently.  
  
"Okay, come back inside."  
  
They went back to her office.  
  
"First, I need 300 credits for you to register in the lottery" Said Lucca.   
  
Combined together, Ash Misty and Brock had just enough. They handed it in.   
  
"I guess we will be sleeping rough for a long time" Brock thought.  
  
"Now, you need to pick a date. It can be of any date in the past or future. I have placed an object in a certain time randomly, and if you pick the correct date, you win."  
  
They all began to think of what date it could be.  
  
"How many digits does the year have" Asked Brock.  
  
"I can't say" Replied Lucca, "It was 'completely' random"  
  
They all sat in frustration. How about my birthday" said Misty.  
  
"Or mine" said Brock.  
  
"How about the date I met Pikachu" said Ash.  
  
"Have you thought of it yet? Here, write it down on this piece of paper." Lucca gave them a clean sheet, which was placed in the table. It was incredibly large, so that they could enter whatever date came to mind. (With extra paper available ^_^)  
  
Ash held the pen on top of the piece of paper, ready to enter something. "I can't decide! Pikachu you do it." He handed the pokemon the pen.  
  
"Ash! Pikachu doesn't know how to write!" Misty pointed out.  
  
Pikachu already started doodling on the sheet happily, then put it down.  
  
Lucca picked up the paper. Her eyes became wide. "Wow, you just might be the lucky one!" Lucca entered it into her computer.  
  
Ash caught a glimpse of the paper. It didn't have a date on it, just a silly doodle that Pikachu made. It looked like a flat figure eight on its side.   
  
"Congratulations! You won!" Said Lucca. "Out of all the possible places in time and space, you picked the correct one." She began to wonder if anyone else knew about the nexus…  
  
"Yes! We won!" Ash shouted. The unusual luck that followed him had struck again.  
  
"Here sign this," she handed a contract. It had really small writing on it.  
  
"What's this for?" asked Ash.  
  
"Just the usual contract. That we are not to be held responsible if you get erased from existence and that you will observe the strict code not to interfere with even the smallest of events in the past."  
  
Ash signed the paper.  
  
"Okay, You are allowed to take one pokemon to battle." said Lucca.  
  
"What! Just one?" Ash thought that was really unfair.  
  
"Take it or leave it."  
  
"Then I choose... Pikachu!" Ash said.   
  
"He said it like he was really considering something else" whispered Misty to Brock.  
  
"I know." Brock whispered back.  
  
"Hey, What about us?" Said Misty realising they haven't been mentioned.  
  
"Sorry, the lottery was only for one winner" Lucca replied.  
  
*************  
  
Meanwhile, Team Rocket was watching through the window.  
  
"He is going to the past," James said.  
  
"Lucky twerp. Why can't we ever get that luck." Jesse whispered to herself.  
  
"Do I have to explain everything?" Meowth said annoyed. "All we got to do is sneak onboard that thing. Then we capture the pokemon and bring it back."  
  
"Then the boss will be really pleased and reward us handsomely" James finished.  
  
They crept around the house towards the back. They saw the time machine. It had 'Epoch' written on it.   
  
"Hey Jesse, what does Epoch mean?" James asked.  
  
"How should I know? Quick, find somewhere to hide inside!"  
  
On the back was a small compartment, which Meowth opened.  
  
"There's lots of junk in here" James said. He started to throw some of it out.   
  
Eventually they cleared out enough space for them to go inside.  
  
"Its still too cramped" said Jesse with meowth's foot sticking into her ear. "Let's put meowth in a pokeball"  
  
"No way!" said Meowth.  
  
"Shhh" said James. "I hear them coming"  
  
************  
  
Ash climbed aboard the strange vehicle.  
  
"Don't forget Ash! If you do capture a pokemon, you need to share it with us!" Misty said.  
  
"No problem Misty," Ash was really glad they helped him. "What kind of pokemon are we after?"  
  
Lucca turned to him with a solemn expression and spoke slowly. "Magikarp"  
  
They blinked. They then laughed on the floor.  
  
Even Team Rocket in the back compartment was laughing, though they gagged each other.  
  
"Really?" Ash sad in between giggles. "I thought it was the most dangerous pokemon"  
  
"Back then it was," Lucca began to describe the ferocious pokemon. "Imagine a pokemon about three times the size of an adult Garados. It looks like the magicarp of today, but it has razor sharp teeth that can pierce titanium. It can swim in any environment possible. Land, air, water, fire, maybe even outer space. Its scales are super hard such that nothing I have seen so far can even pierce it. Imagine now that it also has full telekinetic powers, and is extremely aggressive."  
  
Team rocket, hearing this, started to whiten in fear.  
  
"Well it's a water type. I picked an electric type, I should have no trouble." Ash said with his trademarked cockiness.  
  
"That's what Gary thought," Lucca remembered. "Just remember, do not stray from the designated path. If you do, don't touch anything. The slightest change could horribly alter the futures in ways you can't imagine."  
  
"Such as?"  
  
"Do you think pokemon evolved naturally?" Lucca questioned.  
  
Ash thought about that. "What do you mean by that?"  
  
He didn't get an answer as Lucca started activating the time machine.   
  
"Hold on!" she shouted, as the machine started to hover.  
  
Misty and Brock stood in front of the area they vanished.  
  
"He's going to mess up time isn't he?" Misty said aloud.  
  
Brock stood quiet for a moment. He gave a glance at Misty, then at the world around him. "Well, its been great knowing ya," he sighed.  
  
There was no flash, no noise, nothing that could even hint at the alteration of the time stream.   
  
And the world was changed forever.  
  
********************************************************************************* 


	2. 

Chapter 2  
  
65 million BC.   
  
Pokemon evolution has made a terrible mistake. A supreme pokemon has been created that can destroy anything.   
  
Magikarp.  
  
The sound of its name was enough to drive any reasonably intelligent creature away. What unearthly powers made such an abomination, nobody will ever know, and nobody really cares. All they see is that the power, and to command it, is to be the ultimate master.  
  
The time machine gently appeared into the scenery. They stood on a slightly raised platform. A bluish field surrounded the path, the only barrier to the true prehistoric earth.  
  
"Here we are." Said Lucca. "Now for the rules. Two are most important, only go after the designated Magikarp. I will ensure you do that part. Secondly, never step off the path." she then got of the machine.  
  
"Hey Lucca," Ash called. "If we capture it, doesn't that mean we are altering the future anyway?"  
  
"No Ash. We have made safe guards to ensure that never happens," She said proudly. " So long as you do not step off the path, you are in a completely controlled environment. Nothing you do while here will alter anything. When you fight the magikarp, it will be a specially prepared one."  
  
"How?"  
  
"Okay, look. The magikarp is already destined to die. When magikarp die, they do not lie on the ground. Their psychokinetic powers make them fly up into deep space. The gravitational force of the sun then catches them, where they are destroyed. The one we are after will die very shortly. Even if you capture it, it will not matter."  
  
"Are you sure?" Ash said suddenly worried.  
  
"Positive." Lucca replied. "Besides, this pokemon is impossible to capture" She replied with smugness.   
"Also, even if you did 'somehow' alter the past, I have a device that will automatically undo anything we did." She said confidently. "At least if multi-dimensional theory is correct," That one final safeguard should be packed in the back of the Time machine....  
  
"Hey wait a sec! What good is having a pokemon that will die soon?"  
  
"That has also been taken care of. You will get a certificate saying you caught it, and you will be extremely famous, so you get recognition..."  
  
"Well, that's a little better, but I would like to use it in fights"  
  
"Where's your sense of sportsmanship?" Said Lucca surprised at him.  
  
"Well.. I... I 'will' catch it fair and square..." Ash replied weakly.  
  
"If you did catch it, you can win any fight anywhere, assuming it obeyed you. " She said, but caught Ash's crestfallen expression. "Listen, Scientists are also interested in it, we can always clone it."  
  
"You can do that?"  
  
"Absolutely, you can see it when you want as well" Lucca replied.   
  
"Alright, lets get started, Pikachu let's go!"  
  
"Pika?" Pikachu said.  
  
They got off the machine and walked down the path. Lucca walked a slight distance from Ash so as not to interfere.  
  
******************  
  
Team rocket got out of the Epoch, gasping for air.  
  
"Next time, we travel first class," Jesse said after a bit of coughing.  
  
James looked at the wilderness jungle before him. "Jesse, look where we are"  
  
Meowth also looked. The sight was overwhelming. Strange twisted trees prevented then from seeing very far. They could also see large insects, and animal life that they never seen before.   
  
"That pokemon is bound to be here somewhere." Jesse said getting to the mission at hand. She saw Ash on the luminous path. It curved slightly to the right. "We can get ahead of him if we cut through the jungle." Out of nowhere, she handed cutting tools to swipe at the plants and vegetation.  
  
However, as they were about to step over the path they saw something shimmer in front of them. There appeared to be some sort of a field on the edge, though it looked passable.  
  
Meowth put his hand on it, and watched in amazement as his hand went through. "Would ya look at that"  
  
Jesse Pushed Meowth completely through.  
  
"Watcha do that for!" He cried on the soft dirt.  
  
"We had to test it Meowth. Now we know we can go through," Jesse said.   
  
The trio walked completely through, and onto the prehistoric Earth.   
  
Suddenly, they heard the most terrible wail. The noise was so strong it rocked the ground. "MAAAAGIKARRRRRRRRP"  
  
"What was that?!" James clutched his head in agony.  
  
"I think that was the pokemon we are after!" Jesse shouted excited but afraid.  
  
"Let's let the twerp fight it. You know, to make it easier to capture." said Meowth slightly scared.  
  
**************  
  
A little further ahead, Ash had also heard the noise. He and Pikachu both gulped in nervousness. "Come on pikachu," Ash said boldly. "We can take it on!"  
  
Pikachu cringed at the noise.  
  
"You can give up anytime you want," Luca smiled.  
  
"Never! We never give up!"  
  
"Tell me when you do."   
  
**************  
  
Meanwhile, back at the jungle, James were starting to have second thoughts. "Jesse, I don't want to be here anymore. I want to go home," James whined.  
  
"Not yet, we need this break. Just think about the reward" Jesse pictured it again. Then, she felt something go on her head. "Help! Something's in my hair! Something's in my hair!" She screamed.  
  
"Ill get it!" James said. He swatted the bug. It fell dead on the ground.  
  
"Phew that was close" Jesse sighed. "But I'm not taking any chances" She took out some bug spray and started using it on her. She also sprayed it continuously around her throughout their walk, as well as on a few suspect plants. Just to be on the safe side.  
  
"Let's set a trap for it. I have the perfect one. All we do is dig a hole! All we need is bait..." James looked around.  
  
They started digging.   
  
Of course, to make space, they had to chop a few trees, redistributed a few seeds that probably wont have grown but will now, or maybe the other way round. They also destroyed a few bits of dirt, algae, the primal ooze that is so important to the fate of the human race. (You get the picture)  
  
Then, after all their hard work, (done in anime record time) they got hungry so decided to have a picnic. (Also done in anime record time.)  
  
Of course, there was no rubbish bin, so they left it neatly on the ground, they spilled a little fizzy drink, (To the delight of a young sapling) but they were outside, what did it matter? After the trap was set, they decided to look for Ash. He always found the rare pokemon before them.  
  
****************  
  
Lucca waited patently for Ash to find the magicarp, or chicken out. What ever comes first, she thought. Then she saw something that made her blood run cold. She just caught a glimpse of a fallen tree. She had been in this era so many times. She knew each thing that was suppose to be here. That tree was not suppose to have been broken. What was going on?  
  
Suddenly, Team Rocket decided to show up.  
  
"Prepare for trouble!" Jesse started.   
  
"Make that double" James said.  
  
"What are you doing there!" Lucca cried interrupting the motto. "You could be altering time as we know it!" She was becoming hysterical.  
  
"Pikachu thundershock" Ash commanded.  
  
Pikachu shot the electricity into them. Team Rocket fell back, destroying another ancient dandelion.  
  
Lucca screamed even more. An entire species destruction flared in her mind. "You Idiots! Don't you realise what you have done! Get back on this path now!"  
  
Team Rocket looked at the girl with incomprehension. However, they jumped back on the path.  
  
"Pikaaachuuuu!" Pikachu thundershocked them again, incapacitating the trio.  
  
Lucca was just staring at the destruction she saw. "Our future is gone" She whispered.  
  
"What do you mean?" Ash said. "We're still here."  
  
"We exist outside of time. When we get back, the future will not be the same."  
  
"But you said you can undo the damage..."  
  
Lucca looked up. "You're right!"  
  
***********  
  
They got back to the time machine, dragging Team Rocket. Lucca was dredging through all the stuff at the back of the time machine.  
  
"Where is all my stuff?" She wondered in a panic. The device was supposed to be here! Most of her equipment looked crushed beyond repair.  
  
"It's not here! It's not here!" Lucca shouted. She wondered how Team Rocket got here. Eventually, she put two and two together.   
  
Meowth started to awaken, and got picked up by Lucca.  
  
"What did you do with all my stuff!" Lucca started shaking Meowth.  
  
"S-to-op sh-ak-ing-m-e" the pokemon tried to say.  
  
Ash and pikachu watched the action, not knowing what to say.  
  
Eventually, Lucca put Meowth down. She went back to the pilot seat and turned on the computer.  
  
"Are we going back?" Ash asked as he strapped himself aboard.  
  
Lucca gave a giggle. It then broke to a short laugh. "Go back? Sure. We'll go back. Eventually, the universe will realise we are not supposed to be here. Time catches up with us. What happens then is anyone's guess. Thanks to them," she pointed to the unconscious Team Rocket, "We may not exist."  
  
"Pika chu!" Pikachu cried. Denied existence. So many battles left undone. So many, ketchup bottles untested.   
  
"Don't worry pikachu, We'll get back." Ash comforted his friend, although he too was becoming worried.  
  
"I've got a readout on the damage to the time stream" Lucca looked at a monitor. "This is the first time I have had to access our multidimensional system. That device was supposed to activate a homing beacon in my lab, so we can finds our particular future."  
  
Ash scratched his head at the explanation. "Did you understand any of that Pikachu?"  
  
"Just forget it Ash," sighed Lucca. She tapped a few more buttons.  
  
Ash waited patiently.  
  
"Okay, I think I have a plan. I will send you ahead, to our time. while there, you can tell me if our time has changed." She handed a device. "This will allow you to communicate with me here. I will attempt to send you to our time. Our correct time. When I've got it right, you can tell me, and we can all go home.  
  
"Okay." Ash took the small communicator. Pikachu also was set to go.  
  
Lucca pushed a few buttons. "Good luck Ash. Be careful. You may not like what you see. I just hope the planet is still habitable..."  
  
"I'll be careful." A soft blue light enveloped him, as he disappeared.   
  
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------  
  
Next time.... Ash is hurtled though time and space. Shifing aligences, strange posibilities, and other weird stuff await him. Will he ever make it home? Or will he settle in a new paradise? *shrug* who knows? Not me. At least not yet. :) 


End file.
